{"id":7624,"date":"2017-08-01T16:47:35","date_gmt":"2017-08-01T16:47:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.420magazine.com\/?p=6408"},"modified":"2017-08-01T16:47:35","modified_gmt":"2017-08-01T16:47:35","slug":"should-your-veterinarian-be-allowed-to-prescribe-weed-to-your-dog","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/should-your-veterinarian-be-allowed-to-prescribe-weed-to-your-dog\/","title":{"rendered":"Should Your Veterinarian Be Allowed To Prescribe Weed To Your Dog"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0 5px 5px;float:right;height:100px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/should-your-veterinarian-be-allowed-to-prescribe-weed-to-your-dog\/\" send=\"true\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><p>Legalization of weed in California is leading to an increase in veterinarians seeking expertise about whether marijuana can safely treat pet conditions and illnesses. Veterinary practice regulators say to steer clear, but some in the industry want state lawmakers to step in.<\/p>\n<p>The state\u2019s Veterinary Medical Board, a regulatory agency overseeing state animal hospitals and veterinary practices, has received \u201ca number of questions about the use of marijuana for pets,\u201d according to a 2016 email from a state veterinary board enforcement officer. That prompted agency officials to issue a directive earlier this year to veterinarians across the state that they should not offer medical advice or prescribe marijuana products to animals. Doctors risk losing their licenses if they weigh in on the use of marijuana when treating pets, state officials say.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou are in a bit of a pickle in terms of how you advise your clients,\u201d Annemarie Del Mugnaio, the agency\u2019s executive officer, told the board Wednesday. \u201cBe very cautious&#8230;you\u2019re not in a position to treat or recommend alternative treatments. If it places their animal in harm, there\u2019s a criminal element to that&#8230;I can imagine at some point, if we see animals coming in in extreme despair, there may be charges filed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Because marijuana is still classified federally as a Schedule 1 drug and no law exists in California allowing doctors to prescribe, recommend or approve it for animals, the state is barred from weighing in on its potential dangers, dosage recommendations or accepted medical use. Should the board receive a complaint that an animal doctor prescribed marijuana to a pet or gave medical advice, the state would be \u201cobligated\u201d to investigate,\u201d state officials said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cResearch cannot even be done,\u201d said Cheryl Waterhouse, the agency\u2019s president, who is also a veterinarian.<\/p>\n<p>The state\u2019s legal advice for veterinarians who get questions from pet owners inquiring about dosing or wanting information? \u201cDon\u2019t do it, don\u2019t talk about it,\u201d said Tara Welch, a lawyer for the state Department of Consumer Affairs.<\/p>\n<p>Some practitioners say the state\u2019s position actually creates more potential for harm. They are now turning to state legislators to address the problem.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have patients coming in regularly who have overdoses,\u201d said Richard Sullivan, vice president of the agency and also a veterinarian. He said he and others need medical guidance and safety information so they can address questions from patients seeking to treat their pets with weed.<\/p>\n<p>Gary Richter, an animal doctor at Holistic Veterinary Care and the Montclair Veterinary Hospital, both in Alameda County, said legalization of recreational marijuana last year, and the state\u2019s directive that veterinarians refrain from giving medical advice, is \u201ccounter-intuitive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is completely opposite of what veterinarians as a profession should be doing,\u201d he said, adding that people routinely ask if weed is safe for their pets. \u201cIt\u2019s an every-day occurrence in a lot of offices.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marijuana products for pets are already available at dispensaries and over-the-counter in pet stores. And weed will be legally available for commercial purchase for anyone 21 years or older, come Jan. 1, 2018. Richter said he and other industry advocates are lobbying state lawmakers to consider legislation next year allowing veterinarians to prescribe medical marijuana to pets such as dogs and cats.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe hope to get some legislation passed next year that will remedy this so veterinarians will have legal protections,\u201d Richter said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got a medicine that No. 1, has been proven to be very effective in people and also very effective in animals, and No. 2, is readily available to just about anybody in California. So the concept that the Veterinary Medical Board should be excluded from that conversation and barred from giving pet owners advice on how to do this safely and effectively makes no sense.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Veterinarians must be licensed through the state to practice in California and are required to register with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency if they dispense, administer or prescribe controlled substances. The Food and Drug Administration warns people to beware of \u201cpurchasing and using products containing cannabis for animals\u201d because they aren\u2019t FDA-approved for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation or treatment of diseases.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/should-your-veterinarian-be-allowed-to-prescribe-weed-to-your-dog.jpg\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>News Moderator: Ron Strider <a href=\"http:\/\/www.420magazine.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">420 MAGAZINE \u00ae<\/a><br \/>\nFull Article: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sacbee.com\/news\/politics-government\/capitol-alert\/article163851003.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Weed for treating animals up for debate in California | The Sacramento Bee<\/a><br \/>\nAuthor: Angela Hart<br \/>\nContact: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sacbee.com\/customer-service\/contact-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Contact Us | Sacbee.com &amp; The Sacramento Bee<\/a><br \/>\nPhoto Credit: AP<br \/>\nWebsite: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sacbee.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Breaking News, Sports, Weather &amp; More | Sacbee.com &amp; The Sacramento Bee<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Legalization of weed in California is leading to an increase in veterinarians seeking expertise about whether marijuana can safely treat&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.420magazine.com\/2017\/07\/veterinarian-allowed-prescribe-weed-dog\/\" class=\"read-more\">[Read More]<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2329,9,1,3],"tags":[4896],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7624"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7624"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7624\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7624"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7624"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}